


wherever you are

by ms_ncl



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Anxiety, Chatting & Messaging, Comfort, Crushes, Crying, Drama, F/M, Falling In Love, Feelings, Flashbacks, Fluff, Happy Ending, Misunderstandings, One Shot, Romance, Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-16
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-18 07:28:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,381
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29486031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ms_ncl/pseuds/ms_ncl
Summary: "I have a class around five," was what came out of his mouth instead of his initial plan on fixing his paper for Kakashi."Then we have until four-thirty to explore just to be safe, so you won't be late with your next class." Sakura linked her arm through his and smiled that smile of hers, the one where she would gaze up at him and her eyes crinkled at the corners in delight.  "Would that be enough?"The one he knew he couldn't say no to. "It's more than enough."She was the epitome of unpredictability, and no wonder a careful man such as him was drawn to her like a moth to a flame.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Uchiha Sasuke
Comments: 4
Kudos: 21





	wherever you are

**Author's Note:**

> hello! this is my contribution for the ss x ts event day 4 with the title prompt _sparks fly_. check the event [here](https://twitter.com/sasusakuswift) and hey, if you have works lying around that fit the prompts, maybe you could share it, too :>
> 
> enjoy reading! x

_The way you move is like a full on rainstorm_ _  
__And I’m a house of cards_

Normally, Sasuke’s college life would go like this: sit on the farthest side of the room where the windows were located when attending his writing classes, spend his vacant hours working on the latest happenings on the ongoing athletic event (and if he was motivated enough, attempt to organize the cluttered school paper’s office courtesy of Naruto), and immerse himself in his requirements in the comforts of his dorm room until it was time for him to rest. _It was comforting_ , he thought once in a while. He believed nothing would ever go wrong if he followed his constant routine.

Admittedly, his first year passed like a blur of days filled with curiosity. It was during that time that he was enjoying every minute of his independence when he processed his enrollment forms for the journalism program, as he wasn’t expecting that his parents approved of his choice of degree and moving out of their house. Come second year, he was looking forward to almost every major subject that he had (except for News Reporting, he preferred being behind the cameras), and with a leap of faith, agreed to become the senior sportswriter for their paper.

Now that he was on his first semester as a third-year, today was supposed to be like any other day was Sasuke’s wishful thinking as he sat on his usual seat by the window, taking comfort in the warmth that the few rays of sunlight provided—when his first draft for the final paper on Magazine Journalism was abruptly placed on the wooden desk.

With a mark of C on red ink.

“Sir Kakashi.” He ignored the irritated looks from his classmates as he suddenly pushed them and jogged a few steps towards his professor, who was already out of the door as soon as their class ended. “May I ask a question?”

The older man didn’t slow down his pace, but he met his eyes for a second before questioning him back, “Is this about your draft?”

“Yes, Sir.”

“What about it?”

He calmed himself before proceeding with his next inquiry, his pride be damned. “What’s wrong with my draft?”

Kakashi suddenly stopped in his tracks and tilted his head at him, not minding that they were in the middle of the hallway surrounded by students who were hurrying to their last class of the day. Even him, who was still waiting for his professor's answer, knew that as minutes passed by meant he was already running late for the rundown of articles being discussed at their club room at the moment. Sasuke was starting to feel uncomfortable at his stare when he said, “You tell me.”

His mind drew in a blank.

“Huh?” Was all he could blurt out. Kakashi was still looking at him expectantly, with one hand on his hip as if he was sticking around until he could reply. “I think there was a mistake. Sir,” he paused as he showed his paper in front of him, with his first C on startling red the only proof someone checked it. His hands squeezed into a fist in aggravation as he recalled how he spent sleepless nights researching and rewriting his piece for the subject. “I need your constructive feedback.”

His professor flicked his eyes towards his paper. “No grammatical errors, your spelling and punctuation usage were on point, and even the topic about post-graduation anxiety was something I knew the readers would be interested in.” He let out a heavy sigh. “I know you’re talented, Uchiha. I already handled you before when you were a first-year, and I was hoping I could see that eager boy again. Did you remember my instructions for this project?”

“We were free to write whatever piece of work, as long as it was suitable for a magazine.”

“Think about what you lack right now. You still have two weeks until the next draft. Now if you’ll excuse me,” Kakashi grinned at him as he turned to leave. “I still have one last class to teach.”

Feeling helpless, Sasuke ran a hand through his hair as he watched his professor walk away from him. His phone vibrated in his pocket, and he pressed his lips together in annoyance when he noticed that he was bombarded with messages from their club’s photojournalist asking why he was late for the meeting. Scrolling down to see the rest of his notifications, he was surprised to see that one message was from their editor-in-chief.

 **_Shikamaru_ ** **_  
_** _New beat. Where are you?_

Brushing off the flash of annoyance that he felt for having additional work, he quickly typed in a response saying that he was on his way. He dashed towards the end of the hall where the stairway to their club room was located.

As he slowed down his pace, he couldn’t help but stress out over the list of things he needed to accomplish so that he could raise his grade on Magazine Journalism, his deliverables for the paper, and not to mention his requirements for his other subjects. Ignoring the waves of laughter inside, he slowly opened the door, still lost in thought. _I forgot that I still have those raw videos left for our spot on Editing Techniques. I will need to finish that tonight_ —

When a flash from a camera was directed at him.

“What the hell?” Sasuke covered his face with a hand, swiftly blinking as bright spots hindered his vision.

“She did it!”

“I salute you.”

“That’s my best friend!”

Disregarding his clubmates’ cheers at his expense, he lowered his hand and squinted at the person who took a picture of him when all of them knew how he disliked cameras. _Huh_? He closed his eyes for a second before opening them again to see if he was still under the effects of the flash. The last time he remembered, no one in their club sported pink hair. “Who are you?”

Her shoulders were shaking with silent laughter as she lowered her camera, and he was stricken with astonishment at the vividness of her green eyes before she unexpectedly bowed her head at him, her tone apologetic. "I'm sorry. That wasn't a nice first impression of me. Blame your photojournalist for daring me to do it."

"That's not fair! It was supposed to be a secret," Naruto exclaimed while casually lounging on the sofa. After murmuring an ‘ _It’s okay_ ’ to the pink-haired woman, Sasuke shifted his glare at the blonde who raised his hands in surrender. “Chill. That’s your punishment for being late.”

“Since when did we have a consequence for that?” Their cartoonist questioned with an amused gaze. “You just wanted to piss him off.”

“Shut up, Sai.” Naruto jumped to his feet and walked towards the entryway, where he was still standing with the newcomer. The photojournalist slung an arm around her, and he was about to reprimand him for being too friendly with a stranger when only a giggle bubbled out of her mouth at his antics. “Meet my high school friend, Sakura Haruno. She was also a photojournalist like me, but now she’s part of the exchange program from the neighboring university for… What was it again?”

She lifted her hands and air quoted, “Good relations.” She sent him a smile, thrusting out her hand for a shake. “He didn’t mention it, but I’m a photography major. Nice to meet you!” He accepted the gesture and was about to introduce himself when she continued, “So you’re Sasuke Uchiha, right? The one who will guide me around the university?”

He stiffened, unintentionally gripping her hand tighter in surprise. “What are you talking about?”

“That’s the beat I told you about.” He jerked his head towards Shikamaru, who was on the other side of the room without looking at the trio, his focus fixed on the laptop screen in front of him. Judging from the papers nearby, he was probably proofreading the articles that were already submitted last week. “Technically it isn’t yours, but for Tenten. However, she’s one of our representatives for the exchange program.”

“I’m on sports,” he argued. “I’m not a feature writer like Tenten.”

“It’s not like you’re going to write the article itself.” Naruto let out a nervous laugh as he fidgeted in place. He nonchalantly removed his arm from the woman and clasped his hands together. “Please, Sasuke! I could volunteer myself but Shikamaru swamped me with deliverables for our next issue.”

“It’s true,” the said editor-in-chief answered. “He wasn’t able to contribute much last semester. Just provide the details to Tenten once she got back.”

“If it’s only an interview you need, then I could handle it. But a guide… Honestly, I have a lot on my plate right now.” He switched his attention to Sakura, who was biting her lip with a tense expression on her face. He felt bad for being unhospitable, but then recalled the pile of work that was waiting for him. “If you need a guide, why not ask those students from photography? Don’t you want to hang out with those in the same field?”

“I told my adviser I didn’t need to join them because I have a friend from this university.” She narrowed her eyes at Naruto, who turned his face away with a sheepish laugh. “But that friend didn’t mention that he was busy this semester despite knowing I would be part of the program.”

Sasuke pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, feeling an impending headache from the sudden turn of events. “I’m not promising you that I have the time to tour you around the campus, let alone have _fun_ ,” he gritted out through his teeth.

Sakura nodded quickly, and it was obvious how her mood instantly lifted at the fact that he was willing to guide her, albeit begrudgingly. "I promise I won't bother you much! I just need to tag along whenever you're free so I can document my experience here in your university." The displeasure must have been apparent in his face because she frantically waved her hands between them. “Don’t worry! I won’t submit any photos with your face on them. Just the hotspots in your campus.”

He was certain he didn’t have the luxury to deal with someone he knew nothing about, let alone her who was in the same circle as Naruto. But if she was anything like their photojournalist, Sasuke had to at least drink more than two cups of coffee in the morning for him to even keep up. With an exasperated sigh, he muttered out, “Deal.”

But when she beamed at him with uncontained excitement, he found himself smiling in return.

• ━━━━━ ••●•• ━━━━━ ••

 _You’re the kind of reckless that should send me running_ _  
__But I know that I won’t get far_

Two weeks in and he wasn't sure if this was a great idea.

When he learned that Sakura was only going to visit their campus every Wednesday, he let out a sigh of relief as soon as she went back to catching up with her high school friend. It wasn’t like he hated her—so far she seemed like a decent person, someone he could get along with—but she just came in the worst possible time during his semester. He was confident that he could at least show a little bit of hospitality if she came around earlier.

However, what Sasuke didn’t expect was for her to uphold her end of the deal by dropping by _every_ free period of his.

_The shock was an understatement the next time he saw her—camera slung around her neck—right outside of the auditorium where his elective class was held. She flashed a peace sign when she saw him walk towards her, and he remembered how it was him who sent her his schedule so she was aware of his vacant hours, and the ones she could sit in. “I still can’t believe I will be able to attend the well-known Sir Jiraiya's Creative Writing class," Sakura whispered in his ear, her eyes twinkling in excitement._

_He shivered a little, from her sudden closeness or the slight chill in the room, he didn't know. "Are you a fan of his novels before?"_

_She snorted at Sasuke, oblivious to his predicament. "I'm not. Mind you, I know which genre he wrote for." But then, she leaned forward on her seat, her focus intent on the lecture. "But I couldn't deny the fact that his works were top notch—the plot and characters were so intricately written—that if I were to meet a journalist of his caliber, it would be an honor if I could photograph for them." A smile tugged on her lips as she listened, and he was astounded to find himself staring at her—a stranger—and how he was rendered breathless to witness someone whose passion was evident in her features enjoying what she was doing._

_And Sakura reminded him of his old self, and it wasn't a memory he wanted to reminisce. So he only propped his chin on his hand as he turned his face away from her, letting Sir Jiraiya's voice fill in the quietness between them._

When the third week came, Sasuke sat on his bed and tried to compose a message to her asking if it was okay to skip this week’s tour or if she would like him to ask the others from the club if they were free to show her around. Technically he wasn’t avoiding her, but he needed that two hours of free time in between of his classes to contemplate on what went wrong on his paper for Kakashi _again_. He was getting sick of seeing another red C on his work without knowing the reason why.

Scrutinizing his message, he remembered how she was in high spirits last week when he informed her that they will go to the campus’ museum next. He couldn’t bear to see the crestfallen look on Sakura’s face if he had to tell this himself, and his fingers moved on their own accord to send an additional message to appease even a little bit of the disappointment that she might feel because he ruined their plan.

 **_Sasuke_ ** **  
**_I'm sorry._

Guilt gnawed at him throughout the night and even until the sun rose on the horizon, successfully distracting him from rewriting not even a half of his paper. The feeling didn’t leave him even as he went to his morning classes, his mind preoccupied with a pink-haired photojournalist and if she was already enjoying herself at the museum with Sai, who agreed to be the tour guide for the day as long as he would treat him with lunch the next day.

And it was a lapse of judgment on his part last night, however, when he forgot that she was a friend of Naruto’s.

“I'm kind of glad I didn't listen to you.” He froze and couldn’t help but stare with wide eyes at the woman in front of him, who was leaning against the wall as students flooded out of the classrooms. Sakura giggled at his dumbstruck expression. "You look like a _wreck_."

“What are you doing here, Haruno?” Sasuke questioned her, mumbling apologies right after to his classmates for blocking the door. He made his way to her with furrowed brows. “Did Sai ditch you?”

She rolled her eyes at him. “No. I was the one who told him not to bother.” When he didn’t respond, still bewildered by her presence, she went on. “Have you eaten anything yet?”

He thought back to how he only drank one cup of coffee this morning, anticipating that he wasn’t going to be able to bump into her or Naruto today. “Not yet.”

“Sasuke.” She fished out her phone from her bag, and added in a reprimanding voice, “It’s past one o’clock. You have to eat something. Who knows what might have happened to you if I didn't push through with meeting you instead. While we're at it, let's reschedule the museum trip and switch it with the one you told me about. The famed street for having numerous food stalls!"

"I have a class around five," was what came out of his mouth instead of his initial plan on fixing his paper for Kakashi.

"Then we have until four-thirty to explore just to be safe, so you won't be late with your next class." Sakura linked her arm through his and smiled that smile of hers, the one where she would gaze up at him and her eyes crinkled at the corners in delight. "Would that be enough?"

The one he knew he couldn't say no to. "It's more than enough."

• ━━━━━ ••●•• ━━━━━ ••

 _And you stood there in front of me just_ _  
__Close enough to touch_

"Haruno." Sasuke watched her snap a photo somewhere at the university’s main library, the destination for this week, before taking a seat across from his. He leaned back on his chair as he waited for her until she was satisfied with her shots. He watched how the sparkle in her green orbs from holding her camera never faded for the duration that she was with him. Before she could catch him looking at her, he asked, “Do you just take pictures of anything?”

Sakura turned off her camera and glanced up through her lashes, playfulness in her tone as she asked in return, “Do you just write about anything?”

He chuckled. It was still a surprise how easy it was for him to become comfortable around her. “Fair point.”

“In all seriousness though…" He inched closer as she spoke softly. _This was so they_ _could hear each other_ , he convinced himself. There was only a book about the art of photography that she managed to swipe from the shelves on the table and an old issue of their local newspaper as a gap between them. "This sounds cliché, but I believe there's a beauty in everything, you know? And it's heartbreaking to think about the people who couldn't find it in themselves to _really_ see, or perhaps those who try to ignore it all, whatever their reasons."

Sasuke held his breath. He knew the feeling very well. "I understand."

"And I wanted for them to realize what they're missing out, that's why I take pictures," she continued, her eyes not leaving his, as if she was telling him something important. "I hoped there would come a time where they could see the beauty in this world the same way that I do."

There was an intensity in Sakura's gaze that was too much for him to handle, but he couldn't find it in himself to turn away. "There wasn't a time where you felt uninspired? Or scared that something might go wrong along the way?"

"Of course there was. Is this an impromptu interview for the paper? You could've informed me—"

"How do you cope up with it?"

She raised her eyebrows at him, and for the first time since they met, she was the one who broke off their eye contact. "I read."

"What?"

"I read," she repeated, and Sasuke noticed a subtle hesitancy in her voice. Because of what, he didn’t know. "Books, articles mostly, as long as it's non-fiction. Most of the time, I needed a reminder that there are other people like me, albeit they show it differently. Pictures are one thing, but written works? The way they paint images in our heads just by mere writing, or perhaps write it in a way where we could see it in an entirely different light. It’s wonderful, isn’t it?"

He lowered his head, trying to compose himself as they were getting closer to dangerous territory. Their conversation was spiraling towards a direction he didn't want to visit, but—"So that's why you were so specific on wanting to experience partnering up with a journalist in the future." When Sakura nodded, he couldn't stop himself from asking, "What article made you realize this? They must have been talented to do so."

His eyes shifted towards her camera, where her knuckles were gradually turning white from gripping it. It was silent for a few seconds before she whispered, " _Wherever You Are_."

In the weeks that they had known each other, he concluded that she was the epitome of unpredictability, and no wonder he was drawn to her like a moth to a flame. For a person like him who took solace on consistency, a red flag like her was someone he should avoid getting close to. Dangerous even.

So Sasuke shouldn't be surprised that it was not some random article out there by a prominent author that inspired her, but his.

 _I need to get out of here_.

It happened all at once. One minute he was sitting inside the library surrounded by books, the next he was rushing out of the double doors. He could hear Sakura cried out for him as they both paid no attention to the fuming librarian at their noise. He was frustrated at the possibility that he might be banned when he needed their resources for his paper on Magazine Journalism when he was caught off guard at the hand that clung to his arm.

"Why are you mad—"

"How long have you known?" She flinched at his tone as she stood in front of him. He knew he shouldn't pour out his anger on a person who, by chance, read his work that captured the attention of his university. The work that guaranteed him a slot in the journalism program. The work he considered his _best_. The work put him under a lot of pressure that the eighteen-year-old him back then couldn't even fathom to handle. "Did you sniff around the office for my works to see if I was worth your time? Because a photographer like you should also have an outstanding guide?"

Sasuke couldn't stop the words that went out of his mouth, and he knew he was going too far when her eyes—once filled with good cheer—were now blazed with anger towards him. "Let me remind you that I _was_ a photojournalist. And if your mind is still distracted like how it was for the past weeks—" She thrust the newspaper in his chest rather painfully, the sheets crumpling under the pressure. "Maybe then you'd remember that your work was published, which meant it can be read by anyone."

He could only stare at Sakura as she started to storm away, not waiting for him to answer. Focusing on the newspaper in his hand, he distinguished the absence of the usual library stamp saying that it was their property. He attempted to straighten out the creases, and spotted scribbles from different colors of ink on articles—mostly on the news article, a short narrative about the stand of the owner of the paper. Sasuke couldn't help but feel amused at a doodle of a five-star rating on one of the photographs under sports. By the time that he was on its third page, it hit him.

This was her copy, and it was the issue dated back to three years ago—the one where _Wherever You Are_ was published for winning the best feature in their high school city-wide competition. Without delay, he skipped the editorial cartoons and scanned the feature section. It was right where he knew it was: on the left corner of the page in small font, accompanied by a picture of him holding a trophy with a tight-lipped smile. His article was a baby as compared to the articles right beside it, but seeing it again, he recalled how euphoric he was when he saw his name and his work printed on paper.

However, he detected something he would have overlooked before. Right below his picture, there was something imprinted with the same font as his work.

_Photograph by Sakura Haruno_

And at the end of the article, there were no scribbles or doodles of stars rating his work. Only a sentence, straight to the point and written with utmost care that made his breath quicken.

 _Thank you, Sasuke Uchiha_.

• ━━━━━ ••●•• ━━━━━ ••

 _Close enough to hope you couldn’t see_ _  
__What I was thinking of_

Normally, Sasuke’s Wednesdays would go like this: sit wherever Sakura wanted to sit when attending his writing classes, spend his vacant hours going around the campus (and eat as they go especially when they discovered their mutual love for takoyaki courtesy of her), and immerse themselves in their requirements in the comforts of their respective dorm rooms while on call until it was time for them to rest. _It was fun_ , he thought once in a while. At one point, he believed it was okay to deviate from his constant routine even once a week.

So when she neither show up at Sir Jiraiya's class, nor linger about by the takoyaki food stall, he realized then how their Wednesdays became a moment that he was always looking forward to, and the emptiness he felt in his chest at the outside chance that he might have destroyed whatever relationship (were they even _friends_?) they had left him in distress.

His phone vibrated in his pocket, and it was funny how fast he fished it out to see if the woman he was thinking about finally left him a message. Sasuke sighed when her last name wasn't on the notification list, but one of their loudmouthed friends.

 **_Naruto_ ** **_  
_** _Office. Now._

 **_Sasuke_ ** **_  
_** _???_

 **_Naruto_ ** **_  
_** _Sasuke, I’m not going to ask why one of my best friends came to me crying over the weekend while the other kept looking at his phone during the meeting. Just come here._

He sighed, blaming himself all over again for being rash at the one person who understood his passion for the arts. He thought about not turning up, but then he went back to the day the fallout occurred—how her eyes, despite being burned with fury at his words, was clouded with a tinge of hurt. The bottom line was that he was the one who made her like that, and he hated himself for it.

When he arrived at the school paper’s office, he was greeted by none other than the presence of the photojournalist. He waited for Sasuke to close the door behind him before speaking, “There were only two instances in my life where I saw Sakura crying.” Instead of the familiar grin that was etched on Naruto’s face, it was a scowl directed at him—and it wasn’t the one that held no meaning whenever the both of them bicker, it was traced with animosity. “The first one when we were in high school—which I won’t talk to you about—and the second one…”

The hollow feeling in his chest came back full force as he mumbled, “I’m sorry.”

“We’re already 21, and even if this hurts my ego, we both know you’re smarter than me. You should know who you should be apologizing to.” Naruto dragged his feet towards him and reluctantly handed something out. “I don’t know why she would let you borrow her most precious possession, but she told me you would know the meaning behind the pictures she left here.”

It was Sakura’s camera.

“I can’t.” He shoved his hands into his pockets as he refused to accept the device. “That’s too... personal.”

He shrugged. “You don’t have a choice if you don’t want to make her sad again. I just hope the two of you will patch things up soon.” Sasuke swallowed heavily before grasping it with two hands, not noticing the approved glint on his friend’s eyes at the way he carefully handled the camera. The photojournalist threaded a hand through his hair as he sidestepped towards the exit. “I will leave you alone for now.”

He nodded in reply. He heard Naruto closing the door to the office before he let himself sit on the floor opposite it, holding back for a second before turning on the camera. It was a good thing that he was holding it with both hands because he might have let go in complete surprise at the first photo that was in the gallery. He held it closer to his face and subsequently clicked the right arrow button for the other photos to check if what he was seeing was right. Pictures of pine trees, view of the foggy sky from the foot of the mountain, and the all-too-familiar rocky trail which he knew would lead up to the top—these were taken from his hometown, the setting of his last feature article.

The article that inspired Sakura.

Sasuke spotted the timestamp at the bottom right, indicating she captured these photos a few days after his article was published. _She did this before she met me_ , he said to himself on repeat before taking a look at the pictures—unhurriedly, this time. A smile tugged at his lips when he browsed again. He already knew it before, but he wouldn’t get tired of thinking how talented she was by gazing at her work over and over.

The crisp, cold air on his cheeks when he hiked the trail three years ago, how he could feel the stones on the balls of his feet as he climbed, the triumphant feeling in his chest when he reached the top—these were all the sensations he swore then he would know by heart, but seeing the photos again made him realize that it was all forgotten. And she helped him remember.

The next pictures were of his university—the avenue at the front, relics inside the museum, even a few shots of the food they ate as they went around. _Maybe she forgot to transfer these_ , Sasuke thought as he clicked the button to see if there were others, and found himself unable to move at the next picture.

_He was lying on the couch inside the office, an open book about the techniques of broadcast journalism on his chest. He was waiting for Sakura to arrive before they could go to his next class together and fell asleep while doing so. He didn’t know how much time passed when he woke up feeling disgruntled at the sound of a shutter, and both stiffened as green orbs met onyx with their faces only inches away from each other. Neither of them was willing to break the silence that blanketed them until she murmured under her breath, “You snore like a baby.”_

_“I do not!” She erupted into a fit of giggles as she crawled away, with him trying to take the camera so he could delete the embarrassing photo. “Give me that.”_

_She just stuck her tongue out in response. “Make me.”_

Sasuke snorted at the memory, looking at the photo one more time. He thought she wasn’t able to get a decent picture because they were a laughing mess from running in the cramped space of the office. He was astonished that she was able to catch another one where he was smirking at her when he finally caught her, his hand on her wrist while reaching out for the camera directed at him. Was he truly this happy whenever she was around? Was this how he looked in the eyes of Sakura?

_"I hoped there would come a time where they could see the beauty in this world the same way that I do."_

He drew in a long breath, steadying the erratic beat of his heart when he thought back at her words. Or how her passion for photography urged him to do his best, unknowingly so. Or how her laugh was something he would like to hear once more. Or—

Sasuke darted his eyes towards the entrance where the sound of hurried footsteps could be heard. Before he could hide what he was doing, the door was slammed against the wall.

“I forgot to delete something—” She was panting from running up the stairs, the outdoor breeze from the open windows of the office blowing through the wisps of her pink hair. She saw him on the floor right across from her and took in the sight of him holding her camera in his hands. “Oh no.”

He could have said anything to Sakura then, especially that they were only a few feet apart. How he was sorry for everything that he said last week to her at the library, or how he was thankful that she showed him her pictures of his hometown. Maybe even return the camera while they’re at it. He could have said _anything_. However—

“Nice pictures,” he stammered out. _Idiot_ , he thought to himself as he felt his face warmed—both in embarrassment and recalling how he was just thinking about her a minute ago. Sasuke’s nerves went overdrive when their gazes locked, and to make matters worse, she immediately knew from the few words he uttered that he already saw which ones she forgot to remove.

“I’m sorry!” She squeaked out, a blush forming on her cheeks as she turned away from him in mortification. “I know you don’t like people taking pictures of you—”

 _You’re not the one who should be apologizing_. He let out a breath. “Haruno—”

“I would understand if you don’t want to be friends with me anymore—”

“What are you talking about? Haruno—”

“I’m really, really sorry—”

“Sakura.” She ultimately stopped when he voiced out her given name for the first time. Her lips were parted slightly in surprise as she finally looked at him in the eye. He stood up and approached her, giving her camera back with a small smile. Sasuke’s fingers tingled where they momentarily touched. “It’s okay.”

He wondered if she felt that, too.

“Okay.” She gulped, still watching him. Still waiting for him to do something. It was precisely at this moment, when his heart was still thumping hard against his chest, when they were dangerously close to each other, when they were both under a trance that was _so_ palpable neither of them could ignore that she was the only person he could ask—

“Will you accompany me this weekend?”

• ━━━━━ ••●•• ━━━━━ ••

 _Drop everything now_ _  
__Meet me in the pouring rain_

“This has to be the most impulsive thing I have ever done.”

Sasuke could only smirk at her statement, glad that he was able to witness the aspiring photographer all flabbergasted at the passenger seat of his car (plus the fact that he was able to surprise the most spontaneous person he ever met.) “Technically, it isn’t, because I invited you three days ago and you accepted. So this is all planned.”

“Don’t get smart on me.” Sakura huffed at him as the vehicle passed by one of the signs that told them they were already miles away from the city and its accompanying expectations. “I didn’t even know you could drive.”

He raised an eyebrow as he slowed down the car when there was another slope on the road, which was the last until they pulled in at their destination for the day. “Do I have the face of someone who couldn’t drive?”

And it was as if the fight that they had was already forgotten—something that came into existence from a distant past—from the way she inched forward in her seat to get a closer look at him. If not for the amused glint in her eyes, Sasuke thought she was being serious in observing him. “Nope. You looked too perfect that I hoped there was one thing you couldn’t do.”

He felt his mouth go dry at what she said with their proximity. “Whatever.” Sakura only grinned and moved away from him, and he secretly let out a sigh of relief. The pair exited the car and took a moment to savor the natural chill in the air which he didn’t know he missed. He regarded his companion from the other side of the car, whose eyes were closed and lips shaped into a smile. _Cute_ , he thought when her nose was gradually turning red from the cold. “Let’s go?”

She bobbed her head in agreement, and together they padded towards the hiking trail. If nothing changed for the past years, it was only a short and easy trip that was perfect for beginners. The only downside today was the sky was dark, and the weather was colder than he expected. He just hoped they would be done with the hike before it would rain. From the corner of his eyes, he saw her pull out her camera from her backpack. When she caught him staring, she rolled her eyes. “I bet you’re thinking why I would take pictures again if I already did before.”

“I wouldn’t deny it.”

“I was alone then.” She spun loosely on her heel to face him, bringing her camera up to her face and _Click!_ Sasuke could only rub his eyes from the flash, but the irritation that always comes along whenever he was being photographed was gone. “But now you’re here with me. I think that’s a big difference, right?”

“You’re right.” He tilted his head at her, a chuckle bubbling out of his mouth at the simplicity of her words. Sakura was leading the way, a clear indication that she still knew the way by heart. A few minutes of silence was shared between them, which was the only moment of space he needed before speaking the question he was bugging to ask since the day he borrowed her camera. “What made you visit here before?”

“Remember the newspaper where your article with my photo was published? Those who were part of it got it hot off the press. I received it the day I told my parents I would be pursuing travel photography, and it was the first time I saw them _that_ upset while grilling me as to why I won’t choose the sciences like them.” She let out a mirthless laugh. “Did your parents support you?”

“Yes,” Sasuke muttered softly. “They let me choose.”

“That’s good for you.” She gave him a sincere smile. “So imagine teenage me, stomping up the stairs because my parents didn’t approve of my dream, which was the only thing in my life I was sure of. But at the same time, I didn’t want to disappoint them, I was this close to following their footsteps.” Sakura hummed softly to herself, lost in thought. “Then I saw that newspaper on my bed.

“I was about to throw it in the trash can because I was throwing a fit when I saw the photo that I took, remembered how I took the picture of a boy the same age as I was with the unmistakable passion in his eyes for what he was doing, whose work won the best feature in the end. So I had to read it.” Neither of them slowed their pace as they conversed, and soon enough they were on one of the peaks of the mountain. She continued quietly, frightened to disturb the serenity that wrapped them as they relaxed in each other’s presence, “It was the best decision I have ever made.”

Sasuke didn’t know if the three years he had not visited the place where his idea for his article was born was the reason why the sight from the mountaintop still took his breath away, or the reality that Sakura was right. That this is a whole, new experience because now, he was with someone who understood him. He heard her say, “I think we should go back down. It’s starting to rain.”

Sure enough, droplets of rain gently cascaded down his cheeks the moment she said it; yet he couldn’t find it in himself to look at her, let alone move his legs so they could sprint down towards his car. He was stuck in place, marveling at the view that was once full of life, but now overcast with shadows. _It’s like me_ , his face contorted at the thought. Before he could be consumed by his thoughts, he plucked up the courage to divulge his secret by muttering out, “I wanted to become a travel writer.”

“What?” It was already pouring, both of them were shivering from the cold, and he could hardly hear her when she yelled, “We should talk in the car—”

“I want to become a travel writer!” He returned her yell, whirling around to face her so he could see her reaction on both of them having the same dream. Sakura was squinting her eyes, having difficulty seeing him amid the rainfall, so he drew nearer to the woman until nothing but only a few inches separated them from each other. “I was so sure I would be able to achieve it, even more so when I was accepted into my dream university. But then I was surrounded by people who were much more talented than I was, and the optimistic writer in me diminished into an ordinary eighteen-year-old whose goal was just to get out of college and get a job at a publishing firm.

“I’m sorry for lashing out at you before just because you were a reminder of my past self. I’m sorry that the Sasuke Uchiha you believed in before is gone. I’m sorry that I don’t know how to get him back. And...” He let out a shaky breath. “I’m sorry you had to see me at my lowest point.”

He was certain she heard him from the way she grew silent at his outburst. He was about to turn away from her, terrified to see even a flicker of pity in her eyes, when she tenderly cupped his face in her hands. “ _If there comes a time that you would feel lost and conflicted, breath for a moment_.

 _“Remember the first time you realized your dream, and ultimately you’ll find yourself free, wherever you are in this world_.” He could only focus on Sakura who was quoting his words from the article. Her, who was all the good in this world, right in front of him, a stark contrast from the darkness that enveloped them. “You told us that you were writing it the way you see the view while you’re here at the peak because you wouldn’t want to let the emotions you were currently feeling then slip from your memory.

“You wrote it so beautifully that I had always wondered what the view looked like in person, so I visited. Sasuke, you made me _dream_ again. And if no one has ever told you this before, then I would be glad to be the first one and will continue to do so if you need it.” She caressed his cheeks, and that’s when he realized that he was already crying—from the onslaught of emotions that he bottled up for so long and from the way she believed in him for years. “I know this before and I know this now. You’ll be a great travel writer.”

And maybe hearing it was the only thing he needed.

He rested his forehead against hers, closing his eyes as he felt his chest lighten up. “Thank you, Sakura.”

• ━━━━━ ••●•• ━━━━━ ••

 _Kiss me on the sidewalk_ _  
__Take away the pain_

He was restless throughout their ride home.

Sasuke’s clothes were sticking uncomfortably in his skin, his hair damp, his mouth trembling from the cold. He was positive Sakura was feeling the same, so he turned on the heater in his car and made her wear his hoodie to at least make her feel warm. But he was back to tapping his fingers on the wheel right after, his eyes on the road but his mind elsewhere. Neither of them spoke, too exhausted after their emotional outburst, yet the silence between them was comfortable.

Initially, he was supposed to take her out to dinner, but she shook her head at him and directed him towards her boarding house. He could see she was eyeing his fingers, antsy to do something. She removed her seatbelt and looked at him as he parked up front. “I’m the one getting all fidgety because of you.”

He tried to stop himself. “Sorry—”

“Don’t.” She went out of his car, and he followed suit. She was slightly leaning on the door with a giggle as he approached. “I know you’re itching to write. Go.”

Sasuke didn’t know what came over him.

Before he allowed himself to leave, he reached out to gently take hold of Sakura’s left hand and touched her knuckles with his lips, taking in the sight of her cheeks flushing at his actions. His heart pounded, and all he wanted was for her to go back inside the car, explore places that took their breath away, and just be _free_. But he knew it wasn’t possible. Not right now. “See you next week,” he said softly.

She squeezed his hand and sent him a smile. “See you.”

-

For everyone who knew him in college, it was not a rare sight for them to see him staring blankly at the screen, the cursor on a blank document flashing right back. It took him hours— _days_ even—to start working on a paper he was obliged to do. And right now, as he took a seat in front of his laptop, the words flowed out of his fingertips continuously as he started his work for Kakashi from scratch.

_The last time I wrote a travel article, at the peak of a mountain surrounded by pine trees, I was trembling from the cold, panting from the hike, in need of a drink or something to eat—but then I saw the view. Ah, I thought, no trace of exhaustion in my body as I grabbed my notebook and wrote to the best of my ability what I saw that time. All I wanted was for the world to know, to see it vividly through my words, about the beauty of this world._

_What I didn’t see coming, was for this same article to resurface after three years, in the hands of a stranger who turned out to be someone who read my work. Who read the work of the eighteen-year-old who aspired to become a travel writer._

_What she didn’t see coming, was that the boy she admired was gone; all that was left was a coward college boy who wrote and wrote for other people. Who forgot why he was writing in the first place._

_What we didn’t see coming, though, was that this unpremeditated encounter of ours was how she made me_ dream _again._

And when he rose from his seat for the first time since he went home, without a cup of coffee in hand and the soft glow of sunrise the only telltale that it was already the next day, Sasuke came to understand what he lacked.

Or perhaps forgotten would be a better term.

“ _You are free to write whatever piece of work, as long as it is suitable for a magazine._ ” His professor’s words echoed in his head. “ _As long as it is something from the heart_.”

-

“Did I hear you correctly?” Shikamaru asked when he requested a meeting with him and Tenten in the guise of consultation for his upcoming sports beat. The three of them were alone in the office, with him sitting across the pair.

“Yes, I wanted to shift to feature.” Sasuke regarded the senior feature writer as he said this, with the latter resting her chin on the palm of her hand as she listened. “And I wanted to be the one who will write the article about the exchange program.”

“Maybe both of us should switch our positions. I could go to sports,” she remarked, sending a wink to Shikamaru’s way who let out an exasperated sigh at her suggestion. “Your beat is about the next basketball game, right? That way I could see Neji in action.”

“It looks like he’s being considered as the next MVP.”

“You know that’s not how it works,” Shikamaru cut them off, massaging his temples as he uttered ‘troublesome’ under his breath.

“But you’re the editor-in-chief,” Tenten whined, grasping his arm and shaking him rather forcefully. “And I know you have the skills to persuade Sir Asuma!”

“I don’t know about your case, but for you...” He jerked his head towards the senior sportswriter, or hopefully, the _former_ senior sportswriter. “You could request a shift to the other department alongside who you would want to promote as the next senior. You could send it to Sir Asuma via email, but I’m pretty sure he would accept it in a flash. So you could start working on the draft about the program.”

“Thank you,” Sasuke responded as he stood up.

“I hope you won’t regret this,” Shikamaru voiced out as he ran his hands through his hair, an evident sign that he was stressed from this unforeseen event.

He chuckled. “I definitely won’t.”

The former surveyed him for a moment until a knowing smirk appeared on his face. “Looking forward to your future works.”

-

“How did it go?” Sakura asked him as soon as he exited the office, rocking back and forth in place in excitement. “Will you be able to shift?”

His mouth dropped open in bewilderment. “I thought we would be meeting at the takoyaki stall.”

“I’m on edge because of you! Other people might get weirded out because I couldn’t stand still.” Sasuke laughed softly at the image, extending his right hand to intertwine their pinky fingers. And perhaps that was the only answer she needed. “You’re doing great.”

“Before you go back permanently…” He gently tugged her close, painfully conscious of the way his heart somersaulted in his chest as he did. With his other hand, he tucked a lock of pink hair behind her ear and murmured, “Would you be willing to collaborate and become the photographer contributor on a feature about your adventures in our university?”

And the soft smile that formed in her lips was something he knew was only meant for him.

“I’d be honored to do so.”

_‘Cause I see, sparks fly, whenever you smile_

**Author's Note:**

> —my [twitter](https://twitter.com/ms_ncl)  
> —my [mood board](https://www.pinterest.ph/ms_ncl/wherever-you-are/)


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